My dear fashionistas, welcome to another autumn fashion story on the Mr.M blog. I hope you are well and ready for a new dose of fashion. Today I will introduce you to an unusual luxury French fashion brand, which has become recognizable in Europe and the world for its unusual combination of futurism and sixties style that I’m sure many of you have heard of – Courrèges.
Courrèges is a French fashion house that opened its doors back in 1961 and the founder of this brand is the revolutionary designer of his time, Mr. André Courrèges. For the first few years of its existence, Courrèges was known for well-tailored suits and dresses with geometric seams, clean lines, as well as the standard knee-length hems of the time. Courrèges trousers of superior fit also caught the attention of buyers of this time. Courrèges design and artistic direction was shaped by Balenciaga, with clothes that were well sculpted for women.
The best description of Courrèges clientele was a mature and conservative woman with a high disposable income. Starting in 1963, the brand became known for extremely simple, geometric, modern designs and a penchant for white, including the “little white dress” and trousers for women. They were often paired with flat boots that attracted particular attention and became known as Courrèges boots, which evolved into the popular Go-go boots. The brand reached its height of fame and influence with its 1964 and ’65 collections, and is best remembered for those collections.
Courrèges‘ spring 1964 collection continued to feature his signature boots, popularized trouser suits and brought a novelty – above-the-knee skirts premiered for the first time in Paris, the city of haute couture. The protective distinctive white color dominated the collection. He presented simple, slightly flowing dresses, well above the knee when paired with Courrèges signature boots. The previous season, the fall of 1963, almost all designers showed boots of different heights, but for the spring of ’64, Courrèges was the only brand to show boots in the new collection. Their signature slim fit and perfect proportions continued to win numerous accolades from the fashion press.
Low-heeled shoes are also shown. Courrèges pants garnered the most attention, starting the pantsuit trend that would change social norms throughout the decade. This season, Courrèges trousers remained slim, but were fitted at the hip, gathered at the front and cut across the hips to maintain a clean, unbroken line. They were paired with simple, well-tailored coats, jackets and geometric-looking tunics with prominent buttons, low-set martingales and pockets that would become one of Courrèges’ signature design details.
The brand showcased its daytime wear with large high-crowned, mostly brimless, space-age hats. Courrèges’ emphasis on trousers extended to the elegant collection, when he also included pieces with lots of bare skin with exposed backs and openwork lace. These clothes are presented in a traditional, dignified salon with classical music and floral scents of perfume.
The Courrèges Fall 1964 collection revolutionized the fashion industry with modern, futuristic designs that were unheard of at the time. The collection included tailored tunics and trousers that were paired with his version of mini skirts. The media of the time declared that this was a revolutionary new way of dressing, saying: “He paired his shorter skirts with white or colored leather boots that added a confident touch to the ensemble.” This look became one of the most important fashion events of the decade and was widely copied.” Fashion Courrèges influence was. so transformative that some fashion writers have compared it to Christian Dior’s 1947 New Look in importance in the fashion world.
Courrèges‘ favorite materials included plastics such as vinyl and stretchy fabrics such as Lycra. Although he preferred white and silver, he often used flashes of citrus, and the predominantly white designs in his August 1964 collection were tempered by touches of his signature clear pink, “luminous yellowish” green, various shades of brown from dark to pale, and the poppy is red in color. Not long after, in 1967, Mr. Courreges married Coqueline Barriere, his design assistant. They met while working together at Balenciaga, and worked together as a husband and wife team for the rest of his life.
The following year, Courrèges sold part of his company to L’Oreal to finance his expansion, which by 1972 included 125 boutiques worldwide. That year, Courrèges was commissioned to design the staff uniforms for that year’s Munich Olympics. Started creating menswear in 1973. He also developed fragrances such as Empreinte, Courrèges Homme, Eau de Courrèges, Courrèges Blue, Sweet Courrèges and Generation Courrèges. In creating clothes, he stayed true to the space-age styles he established in the 1960s, not changing his distinctive design features even as fashions changed in the 1970s.
In the late 1970s, Courrèges signed licensing deals for several clothing lines, from shoes to towels. In early 1983, Courrèges worked with the Japanese motor company Honda to design special editions of their TACT motor scooter. By this time, Coqueline Courrèges had succeeded her husband as artistic director of the brand, and Courrèges retired in 1995 following the successful comeback of the brand in 1994 despite several changes of ownership.
The following year, in 1984, Courrèges designed the Peugeot “Courrèges” bicycle, a limited edition model in two colors – pale blue and white with pink tints, and with matching baskets, chain guard, handlebar grips and mudguards, with Sturmei-Archer gears. Unfortunately, in 2011, Andre and Coqueline Courrèges sold the Courrèges brand for more than 10 million euros to two Young & Rubicam advertising managers, Jacques Bungert and Frédéric Torlotting.
Courrèges suffered from Parkinson’s disease for the last 30 years of his life. He died on January 7, 2016 at the age of 92 in Neuilli-sur-Seine, a populated place outside of Paris.
His death was reported in the popular media and many designers paid tribute to his revolutionary work in the fashion industry. He is still recognized as a designer with a special vision and sense of fashion that is not seen anymore.
In today’s post you have the opportunity to see two pieces from Courrèges new collection – a shirt and geometric wide leg pants. If you want to know more about the Courrèges brand, visit their official online shop and follow them on Facebook and Instagram.
OUTFIT
Shirt: Courrèges
Watch: Schaefer & Companions
Trousers: Courrèges
Sneakers: Loro Piana
We will continue today’s fashion adventure with new friends of the Mr.M blog, a new exclusive Swiss watch brand that I’m sure you’ll love at first sight! Schaefer & Companions (S&C) is a new luxury watch brand founded in 2024 in the Swiss cradle of watchmaking, Le Locle. The foundations of this brand are based on the philosophy of artistic freedom, as well as the fulfillment of human beings through liberating creative power and the purity of the craft gesture are just some of the main values cherished by the founders of this unusual brand.
Schaefer & Companions is a symbol of paying tribute to timeless poetry, creativity, that is why every Schaefer & Companions watch is a special masterpiece that has an unusual story. The essence of the brand is an artistic endeavor and a creative liberating form, an entire interconnected product landscape in the world that stands for creative craftsmanship, or as it is better known in French, “les metiers d’art”.
During the process of creating the first “Antarctica” collection, I had the great honor and pleasure of meeting the founder of this unusual luxury watch brand, Mr. Christophe Schaefer, who enthusiastically presented his ideas and drawings of the watch models he plans to create. This is not an ordinary collaboration but a new chapter that is part of my life’s journey and it is a wonderful feeling to be part of a project like Schaefer & Companions. I also have to make you happy that I am the first brand ambassador of this exceptional watch brand and that I will do my best to introduce you to some of the S&C brand watch models in the coming period through my fashion stories in which you are used to showing you various novelties.
Today we will learn a new term that I will often use during the presentation of this brand – companion. Schafer & Companions is a lifetime journey in which Mr. Schaefer and his companions have invested all their passion, the beauty of life, as well as the hopes that passionate watch lovers will recognize the uniqueness and love of art.
The Schaefer & Companions team decided to “break the ice” by marking the launch of its first watch collection at Geneva Watch Days (GWD) 2024 called “Antarctica“, which brings to life two watch models: Solune Medallion and Solune Grand Art. The Antarctica collection, available in limited editions, encapsulates the frozen vastness, quiet isolation and resilience of Antarctica. In today’s post you have the opportunity to see one of the Solune Grand Art variation of models. They are windows into this vast, icy expanse and represent a subtle artisanal intuition. Enamel is a precious material used to make S&C dials where artists have the opportunity to express their skills.
What is Enamel? Enamel is a glass mixture made of silicon dioxide and various metal oxides added to create different shades. Before any color can be applied, the craftsman must create a good basis for further artistic work. The enamel is crushed, ground and purified, first in distilled water and then in nitric acid. Then the copper, silver or gold plate is cleaned and coated with a layer of white enamel on both sides. The end result is a perfectly clean “canvas” for painting without the fear that the copper will bend when exposed to extreme temperatures.
After the process of making an enamelled dial, we come to the most complex part of making an enamelled watch, and that is making the dial. Because the colors of the enamel react differently and change in the oven, the designer must know exactly in advance how the material will react in order to create a work of art that can be faithfully reproduced.
Once the dial is properly constructed with the coated dial plate, the painting process can begin! The artist prepares a palette of colors with the nuances needed to create a predetermined image. The image must be carefully applied in several layers and baked in an oven up to 800ºC between painting processes. First, harder, more elastic colors are applied that can withstand multiple cracking, while gentle shades are kept in the final stages. With just a small misjudgment, the dial can warp, burst, or explode. Since the colors react to the heat both individually and collectively, a small mistake in the order can lead to unwanted results and force the masters to start re-making the enamelled dial.
Owning a dial, that little enamel masterpiece in my personal collection is exceptional. Due to the cost and complexity associated with its creation, the vast majority of enameled works are in museums. The rarity of skilled craftsmen is another factor, as the craft almost became extinct in the early twentieth century.
Proof that miracles are possible is Mrs. Françoise Remmonay of the Donzé Cadran Atelier based in Le Locle and she is a member of the S&C team and she is in charge of enamelled medallions and dials. In today’s fashion story, you will have the opportunity to see the dial that she made – a model of a frozen ocean that offers a view of the coldest continent in the world – Antarctica.
The Solune Grand Art watch model that you have the opportunity to see in today’s post represents a captured moment of an eternally living landscape of frozen waves of a turbulent ocean. The dial enameling process of this watch model begins with the sculpting of fine sheets of silver that are shaped into a realistic wave structure that provides personality and depth. Several layers of rare and limited enamel derived from antique enamel ateliers were then applied to the silver relief. This composition of enamel relief combined with vibrant colors creates a unique watch with a strong and distinctive character.
Technical Information:
Case Diameter: 43 mm
Case Thickness: 11,4 mm
Case Material Variations: Steel 904 or Steel IP 6 and equal material for indices and hands
Dial: Metiers d’art artistic interpretation ø 36.20 mm
Movement: ETA 2892 decorated, Top assortment, with customized rotor
Movement Details: Automatic with 42h of power reserve at 20,000 Hz
Bracelet material: Apple Suede Leather
Price: CHF 5,000 (approx. EUR 5,300) – tax excluded
You will soon have the opportunity to see other watch models in the Schaefer & Companions brand offer. If you want to stay updated and find out what novelties the watch brand Schaefer & Companions has to offer us, follow them on the social networks Facebook and Instagram.
My dear fashionistas, we have come to the end of another autumn fashion story, where together we discovered the beauty and splendor of sporty, timeless elegance and prestige with the famous French fashion house Courrèges, the beauty of the new revolutionary and special Swiss watch brand Schaefer & Companions, as well as the beauty of urban elegance and timeless classics with Loro Piana, partners with whom fashion stories are a real adventure. I sincerely hope you got some inspiration for your ideal fall outfit!
See you soon and continue our fashion adventures on the Mr.M blog! How did you like my outfit today? I really tried my best to prepare today’s post with lots of love and I hope you like it!
If you have any questions, comments, suggestions or any message for me, you can write me below in the comments. Of course, as always, you can contact me via email or social media channels, which you can find on the CONTACT page. I’ll see you soon!
With Love,
Mr.M
This post is sponsored by Courrèges, Schaefer & Companions and Loro Piana brands. This post is my personal and honest review of their products.